{"id":217634,"date":"2026-06-12T18:08:14","date_gmt":"2026-06-12T18:08:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/217634\/"},"modified":"2026-06-12T18:08:14","modified_gmt":"2026-06-12T18:08:14","slug":"reading-community-players-present-youth-musical-once-on-this-island-jr-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/217634\/","title":{"rendered":"Reading Community Players present youth musical &#8216;Once on This Island JR&#8217;\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Reading Community Players will stage \u201cOnce on This Island JR,\u201d the youth\u2011adapted, Calypso\u2011infused musical that tells the story of Ti Moune, a brave peasant girl whose love and courage challenge the island\u2019s divisions.<\/p>\n<p>The junior edition preserves the heart of the original while tailoring the material and running time for younger performers and family audiences.<\/p>\n<p>Performances are on June 26 and June 27 at Oley Valley High School.<\/p>\n<p>Director Debbi Silas had directed this show once before.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn 2019, my son and I were directing a production that never got performed due to COVID. I needed to bring this story to life,\u201d Silas said in the release.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOnce on This Island Jr.\u201d is an accessible, one\u2011act adaptation of the Tony\u2011nominated Broadway musical by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty. Set on an unnamed island in the French Antilles, the story is framed as a tale told around a fire by island storytellers and follows Ti Moune as she rescues and falls in love with Daniel, a boy from the island\u2019s wealthier side. The plot explores themes of love, class, faith, and the power of storytelling, and asks whether love can truly conquer death.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is a story of a simpler time. A story of magic, choices, commitment, community, sacrifices and love. It shares a message that love and understanding can change the world,\u201d Silas said.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" lazyautosizes lazyload\" alt=\"Brian Hood solos as Agwe, the God of Water, in the Reading Community Players youth musical 'Once on This Island JR' on June 26 and 27.\u00a0 (Photo courtesy of Debbi Silas, Reading Community Players)\" width=\"2061\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1781287693_487_REG-L-RCPyouth-04.jpg\" data-attachment-id=\"1744053\" \/>Brian Hood solos as Agwe, the God of Water, in the Reading Community Players youth musical \u2018Once on This Island JR\u2019 on June 26 and 27.\u00a0 (Photo courtesy of Debbi Silas, Reading Community Players)<br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" lazyautosizes lazyload\" alt=\"Jeremy Ortiz as Daniel fights with Makayla Matt as Andrea in the Reading Community Players youth musical 'Once on This Island JR' on June 26 and 27.\u00a0 (Photo courtesy of Debbi Silas, Reading Community Players)\" width=\"2724\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1781287693_414_REG-L-RCPyouth-03.jpg\" data-attachment-id=\"1744054\" \/>Jeremy Ortiz as Daniel fights with Makayla Matt as Andrea in the Reading Community Players youth musical \u2018Once on This Island JR\u2019 on June 26 and 27.\u00a0 (Photo courtesy of Debbi Silas, Reading Community Players)<br \/>\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\" lazyautosizes lazyload\" alt=\"Kasey O'Mara as Papa Ge, the Sly Demon of Death, and Brian Hood as Agwe, the God of Water, guide Ti Moune through her adventure in the Reading Community Players youth musical 'Once on This Island JR.'\u00a0 (Photo courtesy of Debbi Silas, Reading Community Players)\" width=\"2688\" data- src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1781287694_193_REG-L-RCPyouth-02.jpg\" data-attachment-id=\"1744055\" \/>Kasey O\u2019Mara as Papa Ge, the Sly Demon of Death, and Brian Hood as Agwe, the God of Water, guide Ti Moune through her adventure in the Reading Community Players youth musical \u2018Once on This Island JR.\u2019\u00a0 (Photo courtesy of Debbi Silas, Reading Community Players)<\/p>\n<p>The JR. edition keeps the show\u2019s Caribbean rhythms, colorful storytelling, and ensemble movement, while streamlining some numbers for a shorter performance ideal for school casts. Creative movement and choreography play a central role: performers portraying elements of the island \u2014 trees, animals, storms \u2014 and the four gods (Asaka, Agwe, Erzulie, and Papa Ge) guiding Ti Moune\u2019s journey.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis cast has brought vitality and energy to this heart-warming fable. We hope you lose yourself as the mysteries and miracles befall us through the years,\u201d Silas said.<\/p>\n<p>The production features local youth and adult performers from Berks County, offering opportunities for emerging talent to perform principal and ensemble roles. Minimal but colorful sets and costumes emphasize imagination and movement, allowing the story and performers to remain the focus.<\/p>\n<p>Performances are at 7 p.m. on June 26 and 27. A Saturday 3 p.m. matinee performance will be held on June 27. Contact the Reading Community Players box office at rcptheatre@gmail.com for further information. Tickets are $20 for adults, $15 for students and seniors, and can be purchased online at RCPstage.ludus.com. Flex passes for our 2026 season are also available with big savings. The performance venue is Oley Valley High School at 17 Jefferson St. in Oley.<\/p>\n<p>Reading Community Players is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to bringing quality theatre and arts education to communities. To learn more about the organization and its offerings, visit www.readingcommplayers.com. For questions, contact the RCP President at 610-507-3436 or email RCPtheatre@gmail.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Reading Community Players will stage \u201cOnce on This Island JR,\u201d the youth\u2011adapted, Calypso\u2011infused musical that tells the story&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":217564,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[349,1681,182,858,28,128,130,129,1483,289,1015],"class_list":["post-217634","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-reading","tag-berks-county","tag-entertainment","tag-local-news","tag-ontap","tag-pennsylvania","tag-reading-city","tag-reading-city-headlines","tag-reading-city-news","tag-theater","tag-things-to-do","tag-top-stories-mer"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/217634","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=217634"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/217634\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/217564"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=217634"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=217634"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=217634"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}